ISO 22000 - a way forward for food safety

By Dr. Lalith Senaweera

A safe food supply that will not affect consumer health through chemical, biological and physical contamination is essential for proper nutrition.

Consumers expect the food they buy to be safe and, therefore, the industry has a responsibility to meet their expectations. In any food safety program consumer protection and prevention of food-borne diseases are two essential elements that are the shared responsibility of the Government, the food industry and consumers.

However, there is increasing public concern about the contamination of food as serious outbreaks of food borne diseases have been reported in the past decade illustrates the social significance of these diseases.

ISO 22000 Food Safety Management System

Therefore, it is essential to have effective food control management systems based on the principles of risk-based approaches to handle emerging food safety issues.

These systems are crucial in enabling countries to ensure the safety and quality of the food entering international markets to conform to international standards.

It is for these reasons that the ISO 22000 standard food safety management system has been developed using the best management principles incorporating risk-based approach to assure food safety.

The International Organisation for Standardisation has published a series of standards on food safety as international standards are needed to ensure the safety of the global food supply chain. The ISO 22000 family contains a number of standards each focusing on different aspects of food safety management.

ISO 22000:2005 contains the overall guidelines for food safety management.

ISO/TS 22004:2005 contains guidelines for applying ISO 22000 and ISO 22005:2007 focuses on traceability in the feed and food chain.

ISO 22000:2205 specifies requirements for a food safety management system where an organisation in the food chain needs to control food safety hazards to ensure that food is safe at the time of consumption.

The standard has requirements for Food Safety Management System processes and procedures, and requires that the organisation implement prerequisite programs and HACCP. ISO 22000 is a generic food safety management standard, and can be used by any organisation directly or indirectly involved in the food chain.

Dr. Lalith Senaweera

It applies to all organisations in the food chain. It doesn't matter how complex the organisation is or what size it is, ISO 22000 can help ensure the safety of its food products.

Structure of ISO 22000:2005

The food chain also includes organisations that do not directly handle food. These include organisations that produce feed for animals that produce food and for animals that will be used as food. It also includes organisations that produce materials that will eventually come into contact with food or food ingredients.

The ISO 22000 standard includes five sections to set up a sound food safety management system: General requirements, Management responsibility, Resource requirements, Planning and realisation and validation, Verification and improvement.

Application of an effective ISO 22000:2005 Food safety Management system requires the commitment of the management and involvement of every employee in the company.

An effective application of ISO 22000:2005 leads to:

Identifying of critical control points to limit technical resources targeted at the management of the food safety program.

Disciplined and systematic approach for continuous improvement in product safety.

Providing confidence to consumers on food safety and assist in demonstrating food safety and food hygiene regulations.

Demonstrate the professional approach of the organisation in implementing food safety systems and enables the organisation to compete more effectively in international markets.

Places the responsibility for ensuring food safety on the organisation, it brings management commitment and encourages people from all operational areas to take an active role in planning and implementing food protection controls.

Encourages in-depth understanding and familiarity with the procurement process of raw materials, manufacturing system and storage and distribution, emphasising hazard prevention early in the food production system.

Increase awareness among the employees of the organisation about the important techniques that control the safety of food.

Communicate effectively food safety issues to suppliers, customers and relevant interested parties in the food chain.

Benefits of ISO 22000:2005

It is an internationally recognised as one of the most-effective food safety management systems of controlling food related problems worldwide. It is also compatible with any other management systems. e.g. ISO 9001 and demonstrates management commitment to food safety.

The Sri Lanka Standards Institution (SLSI) has devised a scheme to certify organisations against ISO 22000 Food Safety Management System standard and over 100 organisations have been certified under this scheme.

The SLSI has 30 professionally full-qualified auditors who conduct audits and provide valuable inputs to business enterprises to improve and maintain an effective Food Safety Management System while helping them to penetrate international markets.

ISO 22000 requires one to build a Food Safety Management System. This means that you will have a documented system in place and fully implemented throughout your facility that includes:

Effective prerequisite programs to ensure a clean sanitary environment.

A hazard analysis and critical control plan developed to identify, prevent and eliminate food safety hazards.

Established documented food safety management system processes to manage food safety throughout your organisation - from management and business planning aspects to day-to-day communication and operations affecting food safety.

The ISO 22000 standard contains the specific requirements to be addressed by the Food Safety Management System (FSMS). The standard requires food safety management system processes including:

Having an overall food safety policy for your organisation, developed by top management.

Setting objectives that will drive your company to comply with this policy.

Planning and designing a management system and documenting the system.

Maintaining records of the performance of the system.

Establishing a group of qualified people to make up a Food Safety team.

Defining communication procedures to ensure effective communication with important contacts outside the company (regulatory, customers, suppliers and others) and for effective internal communication.

Having an emergency plan.

Holding management review meetings to evaluate the performance of the FSMS. Providing adequate resources for the effective operation of the FSMS including appropriately trained and qualified personnel, sufficient infrastructure and appropriate work environment to ensure food safety.

Implementing Prerequisite Programs.

Following HACCP principles.

Establishing a traceability system for identification of product.

Establishing a corrective action system and control of nonconforming product.

Maintaining a documented procedure for handling withdrawal of a product.

Controlling monitoring and measuring devices.

Establishing and maintaining an internal audit program.

Continually updating and improving the FSMS.

Read about the requirements in more detail in 'ISO 22000 Explained'.

ISO 22000:2005 specifies requirements for a food safety management system where an organisation in the food chain needs to control food safety hazards to ensure that food is safe at the time of consumption. It is applicable to all organisations, regardless of size, which are involved in any aspect of the food chain and wish to implement systems that consistently provide safe products.

The means of meeting any requirements of ISO 22000:2005 can be accomplished through the use of internal and external resources.

ISO 22000 is an international standard that defines the requirements of a food safety management system covering all organisations in the food chain from 'farm to fork'.

The writer is the Director General of the Sri Lanka Standards Institute.